Wake Forest Soccer Alum to Receive Pat Tillman Award for Service
When the annual ESPYS Awards air next week, a Wake Forest alum will receive one of the show's most prestigious awards - the Pat Tillman Award for Service.
Erin Regan ('02), who played goalkeeper for the women's soccer team at Winston-Salem, has been named this year's recipient. The award recognizes both athletes and non-athletes who have committed to service and selflessness.
Regan is receiving the award for her efforts through Girls' Fire Camp, a program created to introduce young women to firefighting and emergency services through hands-on leadership from female firefighters.
The Pat Tillman Award is given out annually during the ESPYS to a person who has a connection to sports and also served others in a way "that echoes the legacy of the former NFL player and U.S. Army Ranger, Pat Tillman."
The Pat Tillman Foundation identifies remarkable veterans and military spouses as the next generation of leaders and helps them scale their impact as they enter their next chapter of service beyond self through academic scholarships, lifelong leadership development, and a global community of peers and supporters.
Special honorees for the 2025 @ESPYS have been announced!
— ESPN (@espn) June 30, 2025
Looking forward to celebrating these inspiring individuals 💫
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Regan joined the Los Angeles County Fire Department in 2008. In 2015, she was a co-founder of the Girls' Fire Camp in 2015 to encourage girls to consider a career in firefighting. The camp allows girls to meet with current and former firefighters, as well as learn some of the basics of the business in hopes of increasing female representation in a largely male-dominated field.
Alongside her work developing the younger generation of girls, Regan also co-founded the Women's Fire Prep Academy, providing mentorship and hands-on training to prepare women for the fire academy and a hopeful future in fire service.
A distinguished member of the women's soccer program from 1998-2002, Regan established multiple records that still hold the top spot in the record books. As a freshman, she recorded 75 saves in goal, ranking third in program history in a single season. Additionally, the Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., native leads the program with 347 career saves and sits second with 6,621 minutes in net.
The former first-team All-ACC goalkeeper set several single-season records during her sophomore campaign as well. She leads the program with 113 saves in a single season and held the record for goals against average at 0.71 until this past season, in which Valentina Amaral helped guide the Demon Deacons to a historic run to the National Championship game.
In her second season with the Deacs, Regan recorded nine total shutouts, the second most in program history in a single season. Following her graduation in 2002, Regan pursued a professional career with the Washington Spirit of the former Women's United Soccer Association.
"Erin was a key piece of my first full recruiting class at Wake Forest. She had every attribute a top-level ACC goalkeeper needed: size, strength, range, great reactions, fearlessness, and leadership," said Wake Forest women's soccer head coach Tony da Luz. "Erin's self confidence and strong presence gave our teams a defensive edge on our opponents. She intimidated opposing attackers but was a caring, unconditional teammate who was all in for our team, our program, and Wake Forest University."
"When Erin told me years ago that she was going to be a firefighter/first responder, I thought, 'What a perfect fit.' " de Luz continued. "All of the traits that made Erin a phenomenal goalkeeper quite naturally carried over to her calling to be a firefighter. I am so proud of all she has accomplished; she is a true example of Pro Humanitate and deserves the Pat Tillman Award for Service. I know she will be the first to acknowledge that she is part of a team of LA County Firefighters. Erin represents her firefighting team with pride as she always did at Wake Forest."
The 2025 ESPYS, which air live from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Wednesday, July 16, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and will stream live on ESPN+, as well as on-demand the next day on Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+.
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Barry is the managing editor/publisher of both the TCU Horned Frogs On SI and Wake Forest Demon Deacons On SI sites. He oversees a team of 15+ writers, photographers, and podcasters covering all sports at both schools. He writes on football, basketball (men’s and women’s), baseball, men’s tennis, and other sports as needed. His weekly articles include ACC Power Rankings and Poll Watching during the football, basketball, and baseball seasons. Barry is a member of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA), and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). He has covered the 2022 Fiesta Bowl, the 2023 College Football National Championship, the 2023 College World Series, the 2024 NCAA Men’s Tennis National Championship, Big 12 Football Media Days, and Big 12 Basketball Media Days. He is an avid sports fan and traveler, and he loves any opportunity to see a sporting event in person. He has been to 18 of the 30 MLB ballparks, experienced game day at 25 college football stadiums, seen 21 NFL stadiums, and been to 16 bowl games.